Serum uric acid levels in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a meta-analysis

The pathogenic mechanism of ALS remains unclear. However, increasing evidence has indicated that uric acid (UA) may play a protective role in the pathogenesis of ALS. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between serum UA levels and ALS. A comprehensive literature search in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library was conducted up to 31st August, 2017, using keywords. A random-effects model or fixed-effects model was used to calculate the pooled estimate according to the inter-group heterogeneity. Finally, we indentified 8 case-control and 3 cohort studies. The results indicated that patients with ALS had significant decreased levels of serum UA compared to healthy controls (standardized mean difference (SMD) = -0.72, 95% CI [-0.98,-0.46], P < 0.001). Increased serum UA levels were associated with lower all-cause mortality risk among ALS patients (risk ratio (RR) = 0.70, 95% CI [0.57, 0.87], P = 0.001). To summarize, there is an inverse association between serum UA levels and risk of death among ALS patients. Randomized controlled trials with high quality are required to elucidate the role of UA on ALS.